Centre tables Bills to remove PM, CMs, ministers held on criminal charges amid fierce Opposition uproar
As the protests escalated, BJP members, including Union Ministers Ravneet Singh Bittu and Kiren Rijiju came near Shah and there was a brief jostling between Opposition and ruling party MPs.
Three House marshals formed a protective ring around Shah.
Even after the House was adjourned, the Opposition members continued with the sloganeering.
The three Bills are the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill 2025; the Constitution (One Hundred And Thirtieth Amendment) Bill 2025; and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill 2025.
The Bills have proposed that if the prime minister, union ministers or chief ministers, are arrested and detained in custody for 30 consecutive days for offences that attract a jail term of at least five years, they will lose their job on the 31st day.
Opposing the Bill at the introduction stage, Owaisi said the Constitution is being amended to "destabilise governments".
Tewari echoed similar views, saying that one is "innocent till proven guilty".
"... this Bill is against the jurisprudence of criminal justice and distorts Parliamentary democracy. The bill opens door for political misuse and throws all constitutional safeguards to the winds," he said.
RSP MP NK Premchandran alleged that the Bills are being introduced in "undue haste."
"These Bills are not being introduced as per the procedures of the House. What is the undue haste in bringing such important Bills that they have not even been circulated to the members," he said.
According to the Bill, there is no provision under the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 (20 of 1963) for the removal of the chief minister or a minister arrested and detained in custody on account of serious criminal charges.
Hence, there is a need to amend section 45 of the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, to provide a legal framework for the removal of a chief minister or a minister in such cases.
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